


In Every Home

by bearbaitbrook



Series: On Every Page [5]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Office, Angst with a Happy Ending, Editor Betty Cooper, F/M, Long-Distance Relationship, Writer Jughead Jones
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-06
Updated: 2020-12-06
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:16:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27912133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bearbaitbrook/pseuds/bearbaitbrook
Summary: Her bed was empty, the left side cold. The apartment was lonely and quiet at night and she absolutely hated it. Betty Cooper, who had always prided herself on being a strong, independent woman, perfectly capable of making her way in life without a romantic relationship, was alone and she hated it. All because of Jughead Jones.
Relationships: Archie Andrews/Veronica Lodge, Betty Cooper & Jughead Jones, Betty Cooper/Jughead Jones
Series: On Every Page [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1993057
Comments: 6
Kudos: 67
Collections: 8th Bughead Fanfiction Awards - Nominees





	In Every Home

**Author's Note:**

> Back again with another piece of the On Every Page universe! I tried something a bit different here, so I hope you enjoy! Please leave comments and kudos, they seriously make my day

Her bed was empty, the left side cold. The apartment was lonely and quiet at night and she absolutely hated it. Betty Cooper, who had always prided herself on being a strong, independent woman, perfectly capable of making her way in life without a romantic relationship, was alone and she hated it. All because of Jughead Jones.

They had met, had a horrendous first date, discovered that they worked together, had a do-over first date, hit it off, fell madly in love, and had been together ever since. He was her person - the person she felt the most free to be herself around. He was also the person she was missing more than she had ever thought possible.

Jughead's first novel,  _ Sweetwater Secrets,  _ published not long after they started dating, had been an overnight hit. His second,  _ Sweetwater Revenge _ , had been wildly anticipated and highly publicized. His publishing company had insisted on a three month long book tour, and Betty had insisted that he go, eager for him to reap the benefits that his hard work had accomplished. So he had quit his job at On Every Page Publishing Company (a move he had been debating for a while to give him more time to write) and headed across the country. But the initial three month tour had been extended for another six weeks, and  _ fuck _ , Betty missed him. 

Yes, they talked on the phone or video chatted every night, but it wasn't enough. When they hung up her phone, the bed that he had shared with her almost every night was still empty. The flannels and tshirts he left behind had been washed so many times that she could find no remnant of his coffee and leather scent that she loved so much. There was no one to gently tease about the number of times he had pushed the snooze button before she tempted him out of bed with the smell of strong, fresh coffee. There was no one to wipe her tears away after yet another long, hard day at the office, where she was relentlessly tormented by Ethel, despite the fact that Jughead no longer worked there.

She loved her job, she really did. She loved diving into stories that had never been opened before and finding books with potential to share with the world. She loved it even more now that she had been asked to take over Jughead's role of lead editor by management. The problem was Ethel. Still. Despite the fact that Jughead no longer worked at their office, and had nothing whatsoever to do with Betty's promotion, Ethel still hated Betty and did everything she could to make her life miserable. 'Accidental' coffee spills all over Betty's outfit were so frequent that Betty had started keeping a spare set of clothes in her office, and Ethel took great pride in procrastinating on deadlines until the last minute, forcing Betty to stay late at the office several times a week to make sure that things were done on time. More than once, Betty had answered Jughead's nightly Facetime call with bleary eyes, still at the office at nine or ten at night. 

That was how he found her one night, about a week before he was finally due to be home. Ethel had 'misplaced' a series of important print suggestions that had to be sent back to the author by early the next day, only finding them right before she stepped out of the office at 6:30, leaving Betty scrambling to get the job done in time. 

Betty had just sent the documents back to the author when her phone started buzzing loudly, Jughead's caller ID photo lighting up the screen. She smiled tiredly, scrubbing a hand over her face before she swiped and answered the video call. 

"Hey," she said tenderly as, instantly, all of the stress of the day washing away at the sight of him.

"Hey, Betts. Still at the office again?"

She nodded.

"What did Ethel do this time?"

"Misplaced some documents with a hard deadline of five minutes ago. I've been scrambling all evening to get them done."

"Baby, you are her boss now. You know that you would be well within your right to fire her, right?"

"Yes, but she would pull the same stunt she pulls anytime I try to do anything - complains that I'm only getting something because I'm your girlfriend. So then there would be an investigation and I really just don't want to deal with that. Besides, it'll be better once you're home. I'll have you to come home and cuddle up with. And it gives me something to do besides third wheeling with V and Arch and moping around my apartment." She smiled cheerfully at him. He gave a weak smile in return, but she noticed instantly that it didn't reach his eyes. Something was wrong.

"What?" she asked. "Jug, what's up?"

"I um… I have some bad news, Betts." Betty's heart sank.

"Sabrina, um, Sabrina extended the tour by another six weeks. Without telling me about it. And I tried to get out of it, I swear I did, but apparently there's all of these non-refundable fees and… I'm sorry, Betty."

A wave of emotions washed over her. The past four and a half months had been so hard, and she had been counting down the days until he was back with her, and it was for nothing. Another six weeks before she could be with him again. Six months total of long distance, of not being able to be with her boyfriend and have him hold her in his arms. Tears pricked at her eyes and she quickly wiped them away, hoping that Jughead wouldn't see. But he did.

"Don't cry, baby," he whispered soothingly. She ached to be able to lay her head on his chest and feel his heartbeat, strong and steady in her ear, but also feeling guilty for letting him see how much his absence was affecting her. She didn't want him to feel bad - not for taking this opportunity. "And don't feel bad for crying, please?" he continued, like he'd read her mind. "I'm upset too, and you've put up with so much already for me to have this dream, so you get to feel upset, ok? But it's just for another six weeks, and then I'm coming home, come hell or high water. I told Sabrina that she was fired if she ever pulled a stunt like this again. Is Josie back from her leave of absence?" Josie McCoy, the other lead editor at On Every Page, had been on an extended leave of absence to help her mom campaign for Congress, leaving Betty the sole editor in charge at the office. She and Jughead had initially hoped that she might be able to fly out and meet him for a week towards the middle of his book tour, but Josie's absence meant that Betty wasn't able to take more than a day off at a time. Jughead's weekends were always the busiest part of his week - he was often up at the crack of dawn, and still going close to midnight - so there was no point in Betty flying out for a long weekend. 

"No, she's not back for another two months," Betty sighed, miserably. They were both silent for a minute. Jughead looked like he was near tears, too.

"I miss you," he whispered thickly. "I miss you, so fucking much. I wish I was there with you right now."

"I miss you too. It's only six more weeks. We can do another six weeks," Betty said, trying to convince herself. 

"I just wish we didn't have to."

"Me too, Jug. This is hard."

"I'm sorry I'm putting you through this," he whispered miserably. "Betty I would understand if…"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence, Forsythe Pendleton Jones III" she responded ferociously, using his real name to show him just how serious she was. "I love you and I'm not going anywhere. This distance fucking sucks and I miss you so much, but we made it through over four months. We can do another month and a half."

"I love you so much. Thank you for supporting me with this. And next time… next time you're coming with me. I'm never being away from you this long again!"

Betty's breath caught in her throat at his casual mention of 'next time' - they had talked about the future, often, and they both knew absolutely that they envisioned each other in every possible version of the future, but so far they had made no concrete steps towards making that future together more concrete. They spent most nights together, either at his apartment or hers, and they'd never even discussed the possibility of moving in together.

They talked for a few minutes more, before he told her that she should go home. She didn't know if she could handle going back to her empty apartment tonight, but she agreed, told him she loved him, and then hung up. Immediately, she dialed Veronica Lodge, her best friend, who just happened to live two blocks away from the office and had a closet full of clothes that she was all too happy to lend to Betty, making it an ideal spot for Betty to crash when Betty dreaded going home to an empty apartment.

"Hey, V? Can I sleep in your guest room tonight? I'll explain when I get there."

Five minutes later, Betty rang the doorbell of the swanky penthouse apartment that Veronica lived in. A dashing redhead answered the door.

"Hey, Arch," Betty said warmly, stepping across the threshold. Archie Andrews was Veronica's fiance who just also happened to be Jughead's best friend since childhood. Archie and Veronica had set Jughead and Betty up on their first date, and the rest was history. "Thanks for letting me crash tonight."

"Don't even worry about it, Betty," Archie said.

"Agreed, B, our door is always open to you," Veronica agreed. She took a critical look at Betty's face, which was red and puffy from crying. "What happened? Why do you look like you've been crying? I thought you would be excited since Jughead gets home next week!"

"Jughead's tour got extended again. And Ethel was a bitch, as usual, and I just… didn't want to go home. It's for another six weeks, V," Betty sniffled. 

"Oh, B," Veronica said, engulfing Betty in a hug. "I'm so sorry."

"It's so hard sometimes, V," Betty sobbed, breaking down as she clung to her friend. "I want him to have this chance, I really do, but I miss him so much!"

"I know, honey," Veronica murmured sympathetically, rubbing her back. "Long distance sucks. You're still talking everyday, right?"

Betty nodded. "But it's not the same. The apartment just seems so empty without him in it… I think that most of the reason why I put up with Ethel at work is because it gives me an excuse to not go home."

"B, why don't you go visit him? If it's the money, I am totally happy to…"

"I can't get the time off of work," Betty sighed in reply. "I was going to take a week halfway through and fly out to see him, but with Josie gone, I can't take more than a day off at a time, and Jug has so many publicity events on the weekends that I wouldn't see him at all if I went then."

"No. Unacceptable," Veronica declared. "They will just have to live without you for a few days. Tomorrow, B, I want you to march into work and declare that you are taking all of next week off. You are going to surprise your boyfriend with a visit, and I won't hear no for an answer."

"I've tried that, V, and they said no."

"Well then, you refer them to me, and I'll threaten to slap them with so many lawsuits they won't know what hit them." Veronica was a high profile worker's rights lawyer. Most members of New York City corporate management were terrified of her. "Now you go figure out where he'll be and we'll get your ticket booked!"

There was another idea bouncing around in her head since she got off the phone with Jughead, and Betty knew she wouldn't be able to think about sleeping until she talked it out.

"I think I'm going to ask him to move in with me, V," she said slowly. "Is that crazy?"

"Finally!" Veronica cried. "And no, that's not crazy! Archie and I thought that you were coming over to tell us that when you announced that Jughead was leaving on a book tour to be perfectly honest."

"But V, is it too soon?"

"B, you two literally spend every night together. You would save a fortune on rent! And besides, I've never seen a man look at anyone the way Jughead looks at you. Seriously. He'll say yes, B, without a doubt. Now go book your ticket so you can ask him!"

Betty giggled and did as she was told, chatting lightly with Veronica about her day as she did so. Both girls barely noticed that Archie had left the room - a while ago, judging by how late it was.

But Archie Andrews had not gone to bed like the girls thought. Just as Betty announced "Booked! My flight to LA leaves New York at 6 pm on June 1st," Archie picked up his cellphone, dialed a number, and held it to his ear.

"Hey, Jug, do you have a minute?"

***

_ "Hey Arch, what's up?" Jughead asked. Truth be told, he wasn't up for talking to Archie tonight - he was dead tired and he missed his girlfriend, and all he wanted to do was take a shower and then crash in his hotel room while texting Betty. But Archie rarely called him, so he knew that this was something important. _

_ "Hey Jug. Listen, dude, Betty's here and she's not doing great. She's really upset about the tour being extended, but I know that she would never tell you that herself." _

_ Jughead had an inkling that this was the case - he had seen Betty trying to hide her tears when he gave her the news when they talked earlier, and it killed him that she was hurting so much in the name of giving him his dream. Upset didn't even begin to describe how he felt when Sabrina had told him she'd extended his tour without telling him. Four and a half months without once getting to see his girlfriend in person was testing even his abundant patience, and to have no choice in adding another month and a half to that tally was killing him. Knowing how rough work was for her since he'd been gone just made everything worse, and he was dying to curl up in their bed with his arms around her, pulling her into the crook of his arm where she fit unlike any other. She was home for him - she was the place where he felt the most real, the most seen and loved for who he was, and being without that was really starting to mess with his head. _

_ "Yeah, I know, man, but I don't know what to do. Sabrina did all of this without talking to me and if I backed out, there'd be so many cancelation fees slapped on me that I'd have nothing left from what I've made on this tour." And Jughead needed what he'd made on this tour. There was a shiny piece of jewelry in Betty's size on lay away at a jewelry store in New York that he was working to pay off. _

_ "Dude, Jug, you've got to do something. Between you being gone, and Ethel at work, she's miserable. I know that she'd never admit it to you, but she really needs you right now." _

_ "Arch, trust me, I would much rather be with Betty too, but there's nothing I can do about it! My hands are tied, and contracts have been signed. Without my permission but still, they've been signed." _

_ "I think I have an idea," Archie said. _

_ "Shocking," Jughead said dryly. _

_ "Asshole," Archie muttered. "Your best friend's fiance just happens to be a very scary worker's rights lawyer. Tell Sabrina that she needs to let you out of the parts of the tour that she just set up, or Veronica's going to get involved." _

_ Veronica was terrifying when she went into lawyer mode. Jughead couldn't believe that he hadn't thought of this before. "Arch, that just might work!" he exclaimed excitedly, already picturing walking through Betty's front door and into her waiting arms in less than a week.  _

_ "Make it work, dude," Archie urged. "She looked so… broken… when she walked in the door here. She doesn't like going home, you know." _

_ "Yeah, I know," Jughead said miserably. If she hated going home to an empty apartment even a fraction of as much as he hated returning to an empty hotel room at the end of each night, he knew exactly how she felt. In fact, he would be happy if he never had to return to an empty apartment again. Then a thought struck him. "Archie, I think I'm going to ask Betty to move in with me. Is that crazy?" _

_ "Dude, Ronnie and I thought that's what you were going to tell us when you told us about the book tour. Nothing could make more sense for the two of you. Besides, you spend almost every night together anyway." _

_ "All I've been able to think about on this tour is coming home to Betty - I just see images of her opening the door wearing one of my tshirts and I want that to be forever." He nodded determinedly. "I'm telling Sabrina that I'm coming home, and I'm asking Betty to move in as soon as I get there. I'll text you once I know more. Bye Arch." _

_ Jughead hung up the phone and flung the door of his hotel room open, storming two doors down to the room where Sabrina Spellman was staying for this leg of the book tour. "Sabrina, we need to talk," he called as he knocked on the door. _

_ Twenty minutes later, he texted Archie: "My flight gets in at 4pm on June 1st." _

***

To say that Betty was excited was an understatement. She had done as Veronica had told her and announced that she was taking the following week off. As anticipated, she had received an email from corporate rejecting her vacation request, and so she had sent a text to Veronica. Ten minutes later, Betty received a rather chastened email telling her to enjoy her well-earned vacation. 

She also had a text message waiting from Veronica: "If they need anymore reminders about fair vacation policies, send them my way. I'm sure they'd love to hear from me again ;)"

_ Sabrina Spellman had refused to get Jughead out of the extended book tour, even after threatening to bring Veronica into the mix. He spent the entire night awake, pouring over the contract he and Sabrina had signed, eventually coming to the conclusion that nowhere in the contract did he give Sabrina the power to make tour booking decisions like that. She changed her tune shortly after he brought this to her attention - it was either let him out of the tour and personally call and explain the situation to every event booked for the last leg of the tour, or he would personally call the PR firm that she worked at and make sure that they got an honest performance review.  _

_ He texted Archie later that afternoon, as he wrapped up one of his last book signings: "I'm officially coming home! Don't tell Betty - I want it to be a surprise!" _

Betty's last day at work was obnoxiously slow. The seconds ticked by at a snail's pace as she plodded through manuscript after manuscript, counting down the hours, and then the minutes until she would be en route to Los Angeles to visit Jughead. His tour schedule this week was lighter than the past several - only two obligations while she was visiting - so she would have him mostly to herself, and she couldn't wait. She spent more of her day than she should have daydreaming about the look on Jughead's face when he would open the door to see her standing there. He would pull her into his room and kiss her, long and deep, like she'd been wanting and missing for months, and her senses would be overwhelmed with him and only him, and she would finally regain that feeling of home that she has been missing since he left.

_ Jughead's last book signing event at a little Mom and Pop's bookstore went plodding slow. Jughead found himself checking the clock in between each book he signed, and he swore that time was sometimes moving backwards instead of forwards. He had done the book signing routine so many times now that he sometimes thought he felt himself doing it in his sleep, the same way it felt like his body was still moving, even when lying down, after he and Betty had gone ice skating last winter, so he let himself daydream as he signed book after book. He could just imagine the look on her face when she would come home to her apartment, expecting it to be empty, only to find him sitting on her couch. She would drop her belongings to the floor and fling herself into his arms. The more contact the better, so he would pick her up, and she would wrap her legs around his hips and then he would be surrounded by Betty, just like he'd been dreaming about since his flight took off from New York months ago. _

At three, Betty shut down her computer, grabbed the suitcase she had stashed in the corner, and headed towards the door, anxious to get to the airport. 

"Tell Jug I say hi!" Kevin Keller yelled after her as Betty crossed the office. "And have a nice vacation!" Next to him, Ethel scowled.

_ Finally, the line thinned, and Jughead signed his last customer's book with a flourish. He stood up, stretched the stiffness out of his limbs, and headed outside, towards the car that Sabrina had promised to have waiting for him. He was headed home. _

Betty made it to her gate with plenty of time to spare. She found a spot and people watched, willing time to move faster. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught someone with dark hair and a gray beanie that looked like Jughead. But he was gone before she could take a better look. She chalked it up to her excitement at seeing him, and didn't think anymore of it.

_ Jughead's flight landed in New York early - he was a little disappointed that it meant that he would have to wait longer for her, since she didn't get off of work until five, but it would give him more time to stop for some flowers at her neighborhood bodega - maybe he could surprise her with takeaway from their favorite Thai place too. As he made his way up the gangway and out towards the airport gates, he caught sight of a blonde ponytail that reminded him of Betty. He shook his head, knowing that, in his excitement to see her, he was just imagining things, and took off towards the baggage claim. _

_ He made his way to Betty's apartment, stopping first for flowers and food, before letting himself in with the spare key she had given him months ago. At five fifteen, he still hadn't heard from Betty - she normally texted him while she was on her subway trip home. Frowning at the time on his phone, he dialed Betty's number and switched to video chat, strategically positioning himself against a nondescript wall in her apartment, hoping that he wouldn't give her surprise away. _

Betty debated texting Jughead at 5, like she would everyday on her subway ride home (if she went home on time, that is) but decided not to, knowing that in her excitement, she might give something away on accident. She smiled when she saw his number pop up on her screen at five fifteen, and swiped to answer the call. She forgot to think about her surroundings.

_ "Hey, baby," he said, as soon as her beautiful face filled his phone screen. There were people all around her and it almost looked like there were… airplanes… sitting on a tarmac out the window behind her. "Betts, where are you?" _

_ "Oh, dammit," Betty muttered, realizing that she'd spoiled her surprise. "I'm on my way to visit you! Surprise!" _

Jughead started laughing. "What?" she asked, confused. She'd envisioned many reactions when Jughead found out what he had planned, but laughter was not one of them. 

Instead of answering, Jughead just switched the view on his camera, and panned around the space he was calling from. It looked an awful lot like… "is that my apartment?" she asked incredulously.

"Surprise!" he said with a nod, flipping the camera back around.

"Oh my God! You're at my apartment! I'm so glad you called me when you did! I was like ten minutes from boarding my flight! I'll be there in like a half an hour!" She hung up the call, more excited than she'd been since he'd left.

_ He met her at the top of the stairs that led to the subway station nearest her apartment. Her smile widened as she saw him, and as she reached the top of the stairs, she flung herself into his arms. He picked her up, just like he'd imagined, his hands gripping her firmly under her thighs. He felt peace for the first time in four and a half months. _

Her hands cupped his cheeks, thumbs stroking his skin gently. He turned his head and brushed a kiss against her palm, closing his eyes and relishing the moment, before opening them again and looking at her like he couldn't get enough.

"You're here!"she gasped.

"I'm here," he confirmed.

"In New York."

He nodded.

"How long until you have to go back?"

He grinned and set her down, grabbing her suitcase with one of his hands, and her hand with the other, leading them back to her apartment. "I'm not. I called off the last leg of the tour, and Sabrina was looking at a load of legal trouble if she didn't figure out how to get me out of the feed. I missed my girl, and I was ready to come home."

_ She stopped them in the middle of the sidewalk and stood on her tiptoes, leaning up to kiss him. She tasted exactly like he remembered. He moaned as she deepened the kiss, and he gripped her waist, pulling her as close to possible to him. Her hands wound their way into his hair, giving gentle tugs here and there, and he wasn't sure how he'd lived without this for over four months. He wanted this - always. _

He pulled away, sooner than she wanted him to, although it was probably the right timing, given that they were still very much in the middle of a public sidewalk. He looked her deeply in the eye, as if debating something.

"What?" she asked.

"I want to move in together. All I could think about was coming home to you at the end of all of this."

"I want that too, Jug, she admitted. She held out her hand again. "C'mon, let's go home."


End file.
